therefore, largely upon the efficiency of the agricultural staffs and it will not be illogical if the remuneration of these officers, provided that their qualifications are sufficient, should be at least. as high as that of any other branch. 67. This brings us to a further point. If this section of the Report is carefully studied in conjunction with the diagrams and tables it will be seen that, though the salary scales provide for the possible promotion of selected officers up to a maximum of £3,000 per annum, the number of officers to be admitted to any grade can be strictly governed by the scope of the work to be done and the merit of the individual. Reference to Table R* and to the Staff Lists will also show that at the start the majority of officers affected could, if desired, be admitted to a scale with a maximum of £1,000 per annum, plus any compensatory allowance in respect of Provident Fund contributions, and need not be promoted above it, unless the nature of their work and their own qualifications justified such action. On the other hand, we understood that you wished us so to frame our proposals that they should be capable of serving as a basis for a permanent organisation of the Agricultural Service. The Agricultural Report has shown the rapid growth of trade with the Colonies in recent years and the vital importance of agriculture to that trade and to Colonial prosperity. It has also shown the possibilities of very much greater prosperity and growth, if agricultural development is fostered by an efficient and well organised staff. We have therefore deliberately framed our scheme of salaries so as to allow for what we believe to be the inevitable growth in the scope and importance of the Colonial Agricultural Service. V.-FINANCE. 68. We have carefully considered the method by which the Council and the unified Service should be financed, and we have come to the unanimous conclusion that that portion of the total cost which will fall upon Colonial Governments should be provided by means of a percentage cess upon Colonial revenues. It is, in our opinion, of the first importance that provision should be made for the automatic expansion of the Service, and that a definite financial basis should be adopted on which the future development of the scheme may be planned. At a later date, possibly at the next Colonial Office Conference, it may be desirable to review the position in the light of the experience which will then have been gained, but for the present we are agreed that a percentage cess is the most satisfactory course to adopt. Colonial revenues have been steadily increasing during the last few years and if, as we hope and anticipate, the present rate of increase continues it will be possible thereby to maintain an equally steady rate of expansion in the Service. * Page 27. 69. Our detailed estimates are set out below. We propose that the percentage cess should be levied on the revenues of those Colonies which have agricultural interests, and that railway revenues should not be included for this purpose. We recommend that the cess should be fixed at 1/400th, which would produce approximately £120,000. A considerable portion of this sum is, of course, already a charge on Colonial revenues in respect of the existing emoluments of those officers who would be admitted to the Service. 70. We have discussed with the Empire Marketing Board the basis on which they might be prepared to give assistance to the scheme. The Board expressed their willingness to give substantial assistance both towards the cost of the proposed Advisory Council and towards that of establishing a Colonial Agricultural Service. As regards Central Research Stations, however, they pointed out to us that the Imperial Conference, 1926, had already approved the principle of an Empire chain of research stations, and that, as the proceedings of that Conference show, the Dominions are as much interested in that chain as the Colonies. The Board consequently preferred that for the purpose of their contribution expenditure on Central Research Stations should not be grouped with the creation of the Advisory Council and the organisation of a single Colonial Agricultural Service, but should be separately considered by them. The following formula represents the agreement which we reached with the Empire Marketing Board, and which has been subsequently confirmed by you as Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs, regarding the assistance which they will be prepared to give for a period of five years, which is the maximum period for which the Board make grants. Formula. "1. The Empire Marketing Board will recommend to the Secretary of State that a contribution should be made from the Empire Marketing Fund, not exceeding £22,000 per annum, for a period of five years, in the first instance, towards the cost of establishing a Colonial Agricultural Service (including Headquarters Council and staff) on the conditions set out below. 66 2. The above figure of £22,000 per annum is intended to provide for : (a) half the cost of the proposed Headquarters organisation, the Board's contribution not to exceed £10,000 per annum; (b) a contribution towards the cost of the Colonial Agricultural Service not exceeding £12,000 per annum or one-tenth of the total ascertained annual cost of that Service, whichever be the less. 66 3. As regards Central Research Stations, it is agreed that each station should be the subject of discussion between the Empire Marketing Board and the new Council as plans for their foundation or development take shape. The Board desire to make it clear that their inability to recommend the immediate promise of a grant for a new Central Research Station does not imply any reluctance to recommend such a grant at a later stage. It is understood that the proposed new Council will be at liberty to approach the Board for further assistance towards the foundation or development of research stations as and when definite plans are evolved, and the Board undertake to give sympathetic consideration to any such proposals. 66 4. The Board also wish to make it clear that, in the course of some years, it may be necessary to review their grants to Colonial research in the light of their own other liabilities and the state of Colonial resources, and neither party looks upon the assistance proposed as a fixed scale of contribution over an indefinite period of time. As expenditure on Central Research Stations and special schemes increases, the Board's contribution to the Colonial Agricultural Service and the Headquarters organisation will be subject to review from time to time." We are of the opinion that this agreement will be regarded as entirely satisfactory from the point of view of the Colonies, and we wish to express our cordial appreciation of the practical support which the Empire Marketing Board have thus given to our proposals. 71. As we have already stated, we have kept before us the general figure of cost which was envisaged by the Colonial Office Conference, and the provisional estimates for the unified Service which we suggest below have been drawn up accordingly. 72. We recommend that Colonial contributions to the Central Fund should be non-surrenderable, and that any surplus in one year should be carried over to the next. 73. We are of opinion that a sum of approximately 10 per cent. of the Fund's annual revenue should be kept as a balance for contingencies, and we have made allowance accordingly in our estimates: this balance can be used not only to meet unexpected or under-estimated expenses, but also to provide for any special investigations or missions which may be approved by the Secretary of State on the advice of the Council. We could have reduced the reserve provided in our estimates by including further staff at once, but we have thought it preferable to retain this balance and to suggest only a minimum staff for the commencement, leaving the allocation of such further appointments as it may be possible to make in the Service to be decided in the light of experience and according to the needs of the Service generally. We cannot too strongly emphasise that we do not wish to suggest any rigid organisation, or to stereotype in any way the lines along which future development should take place. 74. It will be seen that we have made allowance for Provident Fund contributions in a lump sum. If our recommendations regarding the institution of a Provident Fund Scheme are approved, these contributions will be made in equal proportions by the officer and by the Central Fund, and in that event it will be necessary either to give each officer a compensatory allowance approximately equal to his contribution, or to raise his salary by that amount. It will, however, be a matter of detailed investigation to settle the actual sum involved in each case, and we have therefore thought it more convenient to add a lump sum to our estimates for this purpose. 75. The allowances which we have inserted for the cost of passages on leave and on transfer and for study-leave must be regarded as only approximate. We consider that more facilities. for study-leave will be required for members of the Specialist wing than for officers in the Agricultural wing, and we have accordingly made a slightly larger allowance in their case. 76. It will be seen that in the following estimates we have not specifically included either the Chief Agricultural Adviser or the Assistant Adviser, or the staff of a Central Research Station, who are included in the estimates set out in Parts II and III of this Report respectively. We contemplate that all these officers will eventually be members of the unified Service, but for purposes of convenience we have provided for them under the other heads. 77. Our estimate for the Agricultural wing of the Service is as follows: A. DIRECTORS, DEPUTY DIRECTORS OF AGRICULTURE, &c. Class II. Director of Agriculture-Ceylon. Add 25 per cent. in respect of Provident Fund contribu tions ... ... ... £10,750 Add 10 per cent. in respect of Cost of Passages, Study leave, &c. £4,300 Total ... £58,050 £58,000 We had proposed to allow for 10 officers and 20 officers respectively under these two heads, but these numbers had to be reduced to meet the funds which we estimated would be available. We recommend that these two classes should be the first to be increased when funds permit. |